In honor of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship, we were inspired to put together a little tournament of our own—complete with bracket. As March Madness completes its third round—the Sweet 16—we decided to single out 16 "players" in our industry. But these folks didn't get here because they're a great three-point shooter or shot blocker.

Many of these CEOs were chosen because they represent a good portion of the most popular products and services you and I use today. Others are included because they're forward thinking...or at least their companies are. If you're wondering why some big names are missing—like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates—the selection committee decided to go with execs that are running the show right now. And, in order to provide you with the same kind of information (i.e. Glassdoor ratings and company stock prices) for each participant and their company, we chose CEOs of businesses that are publicly held and traded here in the U.S.

This group of sweet 16 runs many of the companies you've come to love—or at least depend on—in your digital life. Their products influence the way you live and work, how you communicate, what you drive, and more. Many of these folks are as famous, or should I say infamous, as the products and services their companies produce.

Case in point: Mark Zuckerberg. The hoodie-wearing 28-year-old entrepreneur has been immortalized in an Oscar-nominated film (The Social Network), parodied on Saturday Night Live, and cartoonized on The Simpsons. He also happens to be the second youngest self-made billionaire, according to Forbes. Oh, and he heads one of the world's most famous companies: Facebook.

Then there's Tim Cook. You may know him as the guy that took over for Steve Jobs. He also happens to run one of the most successful companies on the planet (17 on the Fortune 500 list for 2012). You may also be familiar with Marissa Meyer. Perhaps it's because she became the youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company last year when she joined Yahoo, or maybe it's because you got sucked into the brouhaha surrounding her controversial ban on telecommuting.

Love them or hate them. Admire them or resent them. These 16 execs did something right (or wrong) to garner our attention. That's why they're here. But their selection was just the beginning. We then created CEO matchups, essentially pitting these folks against each other. Now the rest is up to you. We need you to choose the champion CEO.

There will be four rounds of voting as we drill down to our winner:

- The Sweet 16: Voting takes place March 29th (Friday)

- The Elite 8: Voting takes place April 1st (Monday)

- The Final Four: Voting takes place April 2nd (Tuesday)

- The Finals: Voting takes place April 3rd (Wednesday)

So, take a look at our bracket matchups, check the stats, do some additional research if you like, and then start filling in your bracket. And please, keep coming back to make sure your favorite moves on in each round. When the NCAA has a winner, so will we. We will reveal the champion on April 9th (Tuesday).

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